His Highness the Prince
While Cinderella was drawing everyone's attention, Lu Li found a quiet corner, put a plate of food on it, and started eating. Although he had begun to transform into a half-shadow creature, he was still mostly human.
He had rushed for so long to kill Zhou Gan, and then ran straight back to the stronghold without even having a sip of water before being teleported into the dungeon. He needed some food to replenish his stamina.
To be honest, the food at the ball was alright, considering it was a fairly high-class banquet in the country. Aside from some unusual flavors, the other dishes and desserts were quite good. Of course, it would have been even better if the air wasn't filled with those pungent, unpleasant aromas.
Tonight is the Prince's ball, and all those attending are nobles. However, it's important to note that at this time, people generally believed that water and the body were unclean. Most nobles would only bathe twice in their lives and generally did not have the habit of drinking water. This is why perfume was so popular in Europe.
If these guys didn't wear perfume, by the time they reached modern times, they wouldn't smell much better than a pigsty; they'd be usable as biological weapons.
The smell of the city streets is unbearable even to them, so they usually carry a bunch of lavender with them when they go out to ensure they don't get overwhelmed by the stench. They also frequently apply perfume to mask their body odor.
The Prince's ball attracted a large number of nobles and their families, whose disgusting body odor, combined with the various perfumes they wore, was enough to knock a modern person unconscious.
Of course, for these natives living in this era, their respiratory systems have become accustomed to this smell, which is why they can still put on a forced elegant smile and talk about various secrets with others.
There were even young men and women who took a liking to each other on the spot and went to the small garden in the Prince's palace for a tryst. Lu Li ate his food and listened to the conversations of the noblewomen, thus learning quite a bit of information.
For example, the secret about Cinderella's father, the Baron, having a short sexual relationship was already an open secret in their circle, and the Baroness, Cinderella's Stepmother, often went back to her brother's house, ostensibly to visit relatives, but what she was really doing there was also something everyone knew.
Therefore, the Baron's family was basically the laughing stock of the entire aristocratic circle. These were just some Eight Trigrams -like rumors. What really concerned Lu Li was another piece of news about the Prince, namely his reputation as Prince nemesis.
Rumor has it that His Prince was once engaged to a princess from a neighboring country, but when he went to greet her, she committed suicide. He also later saved another princess named Snow White, who, after becoming a queen, also died of illness.
The deaths of two princesses in quick succession led to the reputation that Prince were princess killers. Of course, this reputation was somewhat of a joke, as sanitation was poor in the Middle Ages and it was quite normal for some people to die from diseases. If they had the chance to marry Prince, they probably would have agreed to anything.
But when Lu Li heard this, he suddenly felt something was amiss. "Marrying a princess from a neighboring country? Could it be that the two Prince are the same person?"
During the last mission, Lu Li and his Prince only briefly encountered the prince before disrupting the Witch's ritual to bring down the Evil God. They were unaware of what happened to the Prince afterward, but Lu Li vaguely sensed that something was amiss.
"The Prince has arrived!" Someone exclaimed, and instantly everyone's gaze turned to a figure appearing upstairs. It was a man in his thirties, tall and handsome, looking at all the nobles with a gentle smile.
Upon seeing the Prince, Lu Li's eyes narrowed. It really was Prince William. However, unlike their previous meeting, Prince William appeared much more mature. In addition, although his sincere and warm smile still looked the same, Lu Li felt a chill run down his spine.
"Welcome everyone to my ball. I hope you all have a great time and find your perfect dance partner." The Prince's gaze swept over the crowd below as he spoke in a gentle yet authoritative tone.
Then the Prince took a wine cup from one of the guards, raised it, and said, "Let us drink to you all, to this wonderful evening!"
"Cheers to His Highness the Prince! Cheers to this wonderful evening!" Everyone downstairs raised their glasses in unison, then toasted with the Prince.
Prince Highness sipped his wine, his slightly narrowed eyes surveying everyone present. When he glanced at Cinderella, he paused for a moment, then a hint of interest flashed in his eyes. But then his expression changed, and he looked at Lu Li standing in the corner with a slightly strange expression.
The Prince then regained his composure, raised his wine glass, and went downstairs. He began to talk with some nobles and chat with some noble ladies and women. Finally, he came to Cinderella's side.
Seeing the Prince approaching, all the men who had been harassing Cinderella disappeared. They had a chance to win Cinderella over before the Prince arrived, but now that Prince was here, everyone wisely left.
Prince William said with a smile, "Beautiful lady, may I offer you a drink?"
"It's my honor!" Cinderella breathed a sigh of relief as she watched the men disperse. Her only goal was the Prince, but due to etiquette, she couldn't refuse to interact with other people. She had been worried about revealing her identity during conversations, but now that she had finally reached her target, all she had to do was win over the Prince.
Prince chatting with Cinderella for a while, Prince Highness extended his hand and said in a slightly magnetic voice, "Then, Miss Cindy, may I dance with you?"
Cinderella suppressed the urge to cheer. Cindy was the name she had given, perhaps her real name, or perhaps something she had just made up, but it didn't matter what the name was. What mattered was that the Prince had invited her to dance.
For a ball, inviting someone to dance the first dance is already akin to an indirect declaration of love. Cinderella could already see a bright future ahead. Although she knew she had a gown and Glass Slipper, giving her a great chance to attract the Prince's attention, she still felt a sense of unreality when Prince actually chose her. Overjoyed, she nodded, forcibly suppressing the urge to scream, and gracefully replied, "It is my great honor."
As the music began, the Prince and Cinderella became the center of attention. Everyone watched their dance; the women Envy Cinderella, and the men gazed Greed at Cinderella beautiful figure.
And time passed slowly as the ball progressed...
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